Oprah Winfrey hopped on Twitter late Tuesday, taking a break from disinfecting, to address an online rumor about her being arrested and her home being raided.
The former queen of daytime television's name had been trending on social media most of the day Tuesday. According to NDTV, the rumors alleged Winfrey was busted for sex trafficking. With internet trolls and everyday people alike with copious amounts of time, the internet report began circulating rapidly. One tweet that included the claims that Oprah, Ellen DeGeneres and others had been linked to a trafficking ring was retweeted more than 500 times.
The rumor reached a loved one of the television icon, which led to her addressing it on her Twitter page.
Though it’s likely no surprise to anyone, the 66-year-old was not arrested and her home had not been raided. Instead, she said she had been spending her days “social distancing”and “sanitizing.”
“Just got a phone call that my name is trending. And being trolled for some awful FAKE thing. It’s NOT TRUE. Haven’t been raided, or arrested,” she wrote during twilight hours Wednesday.
Just got a phone call that my name is trending. And being trolled for some awful FAKE thing. It’s NOT TRUE. Haven’t been raided, or arrested. Just sanitizing and self distancing with the rest of the world. Stay safe everybody.🙏🏾
— Oprah Winfrey (@Oprah) March 18, 2020
Some critics of the media maven were not convinced, associating Winfrey with Harvey Weinstein and Jeffrey Epstein.
Hey Damn Oprah #Oprah you just got exposed, enjoy your jail time with #harveyweinstein pic.twitter.com/ZsknOWq3z6
— Michelle Mahomes (@MahomesMichelle) March 18, 2020
We CHECKED the LIST of EPSTEIN ISLAND VISITORS, we EVEN CHECKED it TWICE, and GUESS WHAT, OPRAH WINFREY was a GUEST OF MR. EPSTEIN! 🤔 OPRAH, WOULD YOU LIKE to SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH US? #WETHEPEOPLE #QAnon #WWG1GWA pic.twitter.com/xyjEoVlYoD
— John Lee (@FoundationXpert) March 18, 2020
As hilarious as all these memes are, and as bogus as the recent rumor is:
— ⚕𝙙𝙧𝙪 (@DrutangAtHome) March 18, 2020
Yeah, Oprah's got deep ties to child sex abusers/trafficking.
Here's a few connections you should look into: pic.twitter.com/lnGB09x71j
Others, whether they believed the rumor or not, mocked the arrest report, because Winfrey has recently been slammed for her ties to the “Leaving Neverland” documentary about Michael Jackson’s sex abuse allegations and a documentary speaking with women accusing Russell Simmons of rape.
Michael seeing why Oprah trending 🤣🤣🤣 #OprahWinfrey pic.twitter.com/BSuN1JNndU
— Odedra Scrivens 🦋✨ (@odedra_scrivens) March 18, 2020
streets saying oprah got arrested pic.twitter.com/IeRePm1K9P
— ʝ.⁷ˣ⁴⁼ᴺᴹ (@LONELYHCURS) March 18, 2020
Many of her fans came to her defense and expressed shock that the television talk legend, who often interviewed victims of abuse and human trafficking on “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” would be implicated in such a crime.
Me: *says goodnight to twitter*
— summer⁷ (@UGHJIMINEE) March 18, 2020
Twitter: *oprah did what*
Me curious af: pic.twitter.com/lyqKHaaLbi
the maniacs still awake on this website made a hoax about oprah being arrested for sex trafficking go viral, then the benevolent maniacs debunked it, and then oprah herself responded, all in the 8ish hour window that reasonable people are asleep during
— Ali Breland (@alibreland) March 18, 2020
There's freedom of speech and then there's slander. These allegations about Oprah because of a FB post is ridiculous. It's downright scary that the masses will believe anything that they read and then form a mob to attack innocent people. Leave Oprah alone and get a life.
— Rodney Bradley (@rodneybr23) March 18, 2020
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